Get to Know Javi Hernandez: ‘Days of Our Lives’ Newbie Al Calderon Introduces Rafe & Gabi’s Cousin

Stephanie Sloane October 25, 2024, 1:07 pm

Al Calderon on 'Days of Our Lives' — Paul Smith

If Al Calderon looks familiar, it could be from his run on X Factor in 2013, or from his recent appearance in Ryan Murphy’s Grotesquerie. But on October 28, the soap world will know him as Days of our Lives’ Javi Hernandez, cousin of Rafe (Galen Gering) and Gabi (Cherie Jimenez).

While Calderon couldn’t be more thrilled to be on Days, he wasn’t as excited when the opportunity first came his way. “Candidly, I was like, ‘A soap opera? Really?’” he recalls. “And my manager was like, ‘Al, just try it. Do your thing. You’re gonna be amazing.’ ”

Calderon sent a self-tape, scored a callback, and then met with casting director Marnie Saitta over Zoom. “I think as actors, our validation really matters,” he notes. “Booking the job is validation and when you don’t get that, or it feels few and far between, especially over the past couple of years with COVID and then the [writers/actors] strikes, it really takes a toll. So, I had a really special experience with Marnie that I’ll never forget. She stopped me middle of the scene and she was like, ‘I just want to let you know that you are sensational,’ and a wave of emotion came over me. It was something that I needed to hear at that time, especially coming from somebody that’s casting an unbelievably prestigious show.”

Al Calderon and Cherie Jimenez on 'Days of Our Lives'

Corday Productions

Calderon’s road to Salem began on Long Island, New York, where he discovered a love of music at a young age. “Singing was my thing,” he recalls. “I saw Les Misérables with my mom when I was 10 or something. I remember this vividly, I leaned over and whispered to her, ‘I have to do this. You can sing and dance and everyone claps for you and I could be the center of attention?’ Oh, my God. Not self-absorbed at all. [Laughs] My mom’s coworker found a theater summer camp in a PennySaver and I went to the camp. My love for theater and performing just evolved from there.”

By 13, he booked a role in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, where he heard some castmates discussing a new musical. “I remember running home, saying, ‘Mom, I have to audition for this musical. It’s called 13. It’s going to be an all-teenage cast,’” he says. “The universe wanted me to be in this because the same casting director that cast the Christmas show was casting 13, so he already knew me, which was lucky. I ended up booking that; 13 was my first Broadway show. And it kind of snowballed after that.”

In 2013, his vocal dreams led him to The X Factor. “I always wanted to be on American Idol,” Calderon explains. “My mom and I went to a cattle call for American Idol in Pittsburgh and we drove and slept on the side of the road. I didn’t get that and I was devastated. A couple of years later, they were holding auditions at Nassau Coliseum for Season 3 of X Factor and it’s literally a 10-minute drive from my dad’s house.”

Calderon advanced through a series of rounds, landing in the Top 10 of male finalists. Though he didn’t make the live shows, he did get a life-changing message after he wrapped. “One of the vocal coaches on X Factor DMed me on Twitter and was like, ‘You were robbed. You should have been in the live shows. You should really consider moving to L.A..’”

Calderon headed west in February 2014 and added some episodic credits to his resumé. “Eleven years later, I’m still kicking,” he declares. “But I’ve been down in the dumps; it sounds linear when I say it like this.”

Now, his focus is on playing Javi, and his first few shows were very memorable, he reports. “On my second or third day, I had a scene where I’m sipping from a glass. I was so nervous that I chipped my tooth a little bit. I noticed it days later and luckily, my friend is my dentist and I was able to get in the next day. That’ll be one of my favorite memories from when I began.”

After months of filming, he has grown close to the actors who play his cousins. “Cherie [Jimenez, Gabi Hernandez] has become like a big sister to me,” Calderon shares. “We connected so deeply. She’s truly a friend for life.” As for Galen Gering (Rafe Hernandez), “I was warned about Galen from Marnie,” Calderon says with a laugh. “She was like, ‘He’s gonna make you laugh so just be aware.’ If Galen and I were the same age in school, I feel like I’d get in trouble with him. But I felt like I fit right in. They really took me under their wing and that was really awesome to come into a family that was written for me, but we ended up really jelling and having a really good time.”

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On October 28, Javi arrives in town following the death of his mother. “He’s ready to start over,” previews Calderon. “I connected to that, too. My mom passed away in 2020 and she was my best friend in the world. Living in L.A. really helped my healing journey. It’s not necessarily running away from your trauma, it’s just a change of scenery that helps you push through that grief, and for Javi, what better way to do it with someone that’s like your big sister.”

Calderon is proud to be playing a gay character. “It’s a big responsibility but I feel honored to be able to be a part of something that might change someone’s perspective,” he offers, teasing there’s romance on the horizon. “The crux and core of any relationship, straight, gay, anything in between, is love and respect and care and kindness. And I think the writers did a really great job of creating a genuine love story that isn’t pander-y, but two people living their lives authentically and unapologetically.”

While filming Days, Calderon booked a role on FX’s Grotesquerie as an AA speaker, and he feels his soap job helped him land the gig. “I am so grateful to be on Days because I have become such a better actor in terms of learning my lines and being able to make choices,” he reflects. “You wouldn’t necessarily feel confident walking into a room of heavy hitters like that, but I really do owe it to Days for helping me find my confidence again. So I walked in there and I was just like, ‘I’m supposed to be here, let’s do it, let’s crush it.’”

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Calderon got to share scenes with Kansas City Chief Travis Kelce, who also appears in the series. “Every time I finished my monologue, Travis would look at me and give me a little wink and, like, remind me that I did a good job, which is always cool and nice,” he shares. “And he and I cut it up and we were chatting and I’m not a big football guy, so I wasn’t necessarily going in with him on the football stuff. I remember he said, ‘So you don’t like football?’ I was like, ‘No, I’m just not a huge sports guy. My dad loves the Jets. I don’t know, he cries every year.’ But he was super cool dude and obviously being on a Ryan Murphy show is super cool. I grew up with Glee and American Horror Story. I won’t take this for granted ever.”

With his Days debut days away, Calderon is ready for whatever comes next. “I feel like I can conquer anything after this,” he says. In the meantime, he is already enjoying engaging with the fans on social media. “My favorite comment, and I actually posted it on my Instagram, was someone commented on a photo with Cherie that was posted all those months ago and I’m wearing a crop top. She wrote, ‘What in the Sam Hill are you wearing?’ And I thought it was genius and I was like, ‘I love you whoever you are. Iconic.”

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